Also known as: Port of Loading · Port of Discharge
POL and POD are the two anchor points of any seaborne operation. POL is where the cargo is loaded, POD where it is discharged, and the POL → POD pair defines the deal’s route.
Choosing ports is not a detail: each pairing carries its own rates, sailing frequency and restrictions, and port charges are usually among the most volatile cost lines of the deal.
Under FOB the seller’s responsibility ends at the POL; under CIF it reaches the POD, freight and insurance included.
FOB
FOB (Free On Board) is the Incoterm where the seller delivers the goods on board the vessel at the agreed port of loading. From that moment the buyer carries the cost and the risk of the sea leg.
CIF
CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight) is the Incoterm where the seller pays for the goods, the insurance and the freight to the destination port — even though risk passes to the buyer once the goods are loaded.
Freight forwarder
A freight forwarder is the company that organises the international movement of the cargo: books vessel space, handles documents, coordinates with the port and, in many cases, takes care of customs.